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Prairie Gates

(8,283 posts)
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 02:50 PM Sunday

Did Trump/Miller Send Vance on Two Fool's Errands to Block the 25th Amendment?

Yesterday, the much publicized peace talks between the US and Iran collapsed in failure. It seems clear that the US went in with non-negotiable positions that it absolutely insisted on, pretty much paving the way for failure in advance.

Earlier this week, Vance was sent to Budapest to shore up the crumbling fortunes of Victor Orban, in a very prominently publicized campaign appearance. While not yet decided, there's a coin-flip of a chance that Orban goes down in ignominious defeat in today's election.

Should the latter come to pass, combined, Vance will be the very public face of two doomed missions, and will come out looking very much like a loser and a fool.

At this point, I don't think Trump is capable of strategic thinking. But Stephen Miller is. And I think Miller is the head of the main faction against Vance in the White House. It's notable that these two very public failures would come immediately after vociferous and public demands for the 25th Amendment to be invoked against Trump. Now, let's be clear. I don't think the 25th is even remotely possible, and if you comment below that I'm leaving out that the 25th isn't remotely possible, you will only be exposing yourself for not having thoughtfully read the post. However, I do think Miller wants to kneecap Vance just in case, especially if Trump truly is slipping into derangement, as he very clearly seems to be.

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Did Trump/Miller Send Vance on Two Fool's Errands to Block the 25th Amendment? (Original Post) Prairie Gates Sunday OP
Trump is doing what is important to him. Setting up fall guys. Walleye Sunday #1
It wouldn't be surprising leftstreet Sunday #2
The 25th amendment is a pipe dream. Republicans would never turn on Dear Leader. Why do we keep Pisces Sunday #3
Oy vey Prairie Gates Sunday #4
I read the post, this is still the reason to hang losses on JD. It is so he is wounded as a candidate in '28 Pisces Sunday #5
I add my "disclaimer" Prairie Gates Sunday #6
Yes, it's becoming more apparent fujiyamasan Sunday #7
Trump and Miller would be making a mistake to trust Rubio Prairie Gates Sunday #8
It may not matter fujiyamasan Sunday #9
MaddowBlog-JD Vance's latest failures join a growing and embarrassing list of Trump-imposed flops LetMyPeopleVote Yesterday #10

leftstreet

(41,006 posts)
2. It wouldn't be surprising
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 03:00 PM
Sunday

Miller thinks he's so clever, yet nothing he's done can reverse the catastrophic downward trending of Trump's poll numbers. Maybe all he has left is discrediting anyone who might get in the way of his agenda

Pisces

(6,276 posts)
3. The 25th amendment is a pipe dream. Republicans would never turn on Dear Leader. Why do we keep
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 03:11 PM
Sunday

fantasizing about something that will never happen??? We need to have a game plan for what can be done without pie in the sky ideas!!!

Prairie Gates

(8,283 posts)
4. Oy vey
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 03:19 PM
Sunday
Now, let's be clear. I don't think the 25th is even remotely possible, and if you comment below that I'm leaving out that the 25th isn't remotely possible, you will only be exposing yourself for not having thoughtfully read the post.


From the unedited original post.

Pisces

(6,276 posts)
5. I read the post, this is still the reason to hang losses on JD. It is so he is wounded as a candidate in '28
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 03:27 PM
Sunday

Miller and JD don’t get along. This has more to do with it. You add your disclaimer at the end however the premise of your post is that this was orchestrated with 25th in mind just to make sure it can’t be used.

Prairie Gates

(8,283 posts)
6. I add my "disclaimer"
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 03:46 PM
Sunday

where it would be traditionally located in an argument with Ciceronian arrangement, as a refutatio. That said, it seems that you just disagree: Trump/Miller did it for X reason, not for Y reason. Great. Disagreement is fine. Your revised response here is much more a response to the OP than your first one was.

fujiyamasan

(1,839 posts)
7. Yes, it's becoming more apparent
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 03:56 PM
Sunday

They may be setting Vance up to fail, to get Rubio or possibly even (shudder) Miller to become the VP.

I think Trump favored heir is Rubio at this point. He’s proven to be loyal — like a sad puppy and is basically Trump’s go to for everything foreign policy related. I’ve also noticed increasing comments from republicans heaping praise on him. He’s their golden boy now.

Prairie Gates

(8,283 posts)
8. Trump and Miller would be making a mistake to trust Rubio
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 04:32 PM
Sunday

He's definitely the kind of guy who's going to get revenge on them for Li'l Marco insults once he gets the ring.

fujiyamasan

(1,839 posts)
9. It may not matter
Sun Apr 12, 2026, 04:42 PM
Sunday

I don’t think Rubio cares. He’s a proven opportunist, in a very ruthless way. Both him and Cruz were insulted constantly in 2016 (even to the pit of Trump insulting Cruz’s wife’s looks), but they’ve stuck with him. Graham is another. They all know they need the cult to survive.

It’s a viper pit. Vance knows he has Thiel’s money to count on, but that may not be enough if Trump steers supporters toward Rubio.

LetMyPeopleVote

(180,454 posts)
10. MaddowBlog-JD Vance's latest failures join a growing and embarrassing list of Trump-imposed flops
Mon Apr 13, 2026, 03:04 PM
Yesterday

Since taking office, the vice president has suffered a series of humiliations and failures after being assigned impossible tasks.

JD Vance’s first failure as VP was in December 2024 — when he was tasked with trying to convince senators to confirm Matt Gaetz as AG.

The list of humiliations has grown longer ever since, including two embarrassments over the weekend.
www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2026-04-13T18:18:33.956Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/jd-vances-latest-failures-join-a-growing-and-embarrassing-list-of-trump-imposed-flops

That failure was a sign of things to come.

Indeed, the events of December 2024 came to mind this week as Vance suffered back-to-back embarrassments. The vice president led a U.S. delegation in Pakistan for talks with Iran, which ended in failure due in part to the instructions he received from Trump; and less than a day later, the world learned of Hungary’s Viktor Orbán’s landslide defeat, despite Vance having campaigned on his behalf.

These were arguably two of the most important tasks the vice president has been assigned while in office, and both ended in failure. They were not, however, his only humiliations:

Vance reportedly advised Trump not to launch the war in Iran. He was ignored.

Vance tried to lead a diplomatic effort in Greenland last year, which was met with a swift and unsubtle backlash.

Vance tried to boost Germany’s right-wing party AfD in the country’s 2025 elections, and those efforts fell short, too.

Throughout his tenure, Vance has been publicly contradicted by Trump on everything from pardons to the deployment of federal troops to U.S. cities to immigration policy.

The vice president, in other words, isn’t exactly racking up victories.

At a recent White House event, Trump asked Vance to comment on negotiations with Iran. When the vice president said the process was “going good,” the president quickly followed up, asking whether the efforts would resolve the war. Vance hedged and said he’d brief Trump later.

“So if it doesn’t happen, I’m blaming JD Vance,” the president concluded. “If it does happen, I’m taking full credit.”

I am betting that Vance is taking this abuse because Vance is hoping that trump will not get through this term.
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